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>Subject: ugnet_: DRC PARTIES IN PEACE DEAL
>Date: Thu, 3 Apr 2003 08:02:09 -0500
>
>
>
>Itayi Musengeyi
>
>SUN CITY, South Africa.
>
>WARRING parties in the Democratic Republic of Congo yesterday
signed an all-inclusive agreement to end four years of war at a ceremony
witnessed here by several African leaders, including President Mugabe
>
>Zimbabwe, along with Angola and Namibia, helped restore peace
in the DRC by sending troops which helped the vast Central African country
repel a Rwandan and Ugandan-backed invasion.
>
>The political settlement will see the reorganisation of the
army to include rebels, an interim constitution and a 14-member committee to
oversee the peace process.
>
>Under the agreement - born out of the year-long Inter-Congolese
Dialogue - President Joseph Kabila will be installed as president of a
transitional government with four deputy presidents drawn from the government,
the two major rebel groups - the Rally for Congolese Democracy (RCD) and the
Movement for the Liberation of the Congo (MLC) - and unarmed opposition
parties.
>
>The interim constitution allows for a broad-based government of
national unity to rule the mineral-rich Congo for two-and-a-half years until
democratic elections, the first in more than 40 years, are held.
>
>A transitional parliament will also be established under the
settlement.
>
>The president of the senate will be drawn from civil society
while the speaker of the national assembly will come from the MLC.
>
>Ministries will be divided up and former rebel fighters will be
integrated into the army and police force.
>
>Speakers at the ceremony hailed the agreement and urged DRC
parties to respect the pact.
>
>"This is truly a red-letter day in the history of our
continent. It is a day of hope and celebration, not only for the people of the
DRC but also for the peoples of Africa as a whole," said South African
President Thabo Mbeki.
>
>But he warned the parties: "You know better than I do that the
implementation of historic agreements you have entered into will not be easy.
>
>"Your problems will originate both from within the Congo and
from elsewhere, outside your borders. To overcome them will require a
single-minded commitment to serve."
>
>The facilitator of the dialogue former Botswana president Sir
Ketumile said: "The signing of these agreements is not only a victory for the
Congo and its people but also a unique and invaluable step towards sustainable
peace, stability and co-operation in the Great Lakes region. However fighting
in East DRC threatens the agreement."
>
>Besides Cde Mugabe, the signing of the pact in the luxury
casino resort of Sun City in northwestern South Africa was also witnessed by
Botswana President Mr Festus Mogae, Namibian President Mr Sam Nujoma and the
President of Zambia Mr Levy Mwanawasa.
>
>The 31-year-old President Kabila, who assumed power after the
assassination of his father Laurent in January 2001, did not attend the
ceremony.
>
>Kikaya bin Karubi, his information minister, told reporters:
"He has the mammoth task of running the country and preparing for our return
to Kinshasa. This a plenary of delegates to the Inter-Congolese Dialogue and
the president was never a delegate to the ICD.
>
>"We see this as a great and happy occasion for the DRC. No more
war. No more rebellion. We can go back from here to participate in the
political process."
>
>First to sign the document was Leonard She Okitundu, President
Kabila's foreign minister, who said: "This is a great day for the DRC. We can
say 'mission accomplished'."
>
>He was followed by rebel RCD leader Adolphe Onusumba and
Olivier Kamitatu, who signed on behalf of MLC leader Jean-Pierre Bemba, who
did not attend, aides said because he was suffering from lumbago.
>
>The final text urges the international community to keep its
interest in the former Zaire, and support it.
>
>The 362 delegates, representing the government, rebels,
militias and opposition politicians and civil society, adopted a new
constitution by acclamation on Tuesday, along with the global and inclusive
agreement on the transition and a memorandum on military and security matters.
>
>According to AFP, Kabila is due to promulgate the constitution
on April 6, thus ushering in the transition.
>
>But a military agreement reached in Pretoria by the chiefs of
staff of the belligerents last Saturday, remained on the table with only the
RCD having signed.
>
>UN special envoy Moustapha Niasse, who facilitated the talks,
said it would have to be resolved without the help of the mediation team.
>
>"The Congolese people have to start doing something for
themselves."
>
>Some 2,5 million people according to UN figures, died either
directly in combat or indirectly through disease and malnutrition in the
conflict which broke out in August 1998.
>
>At its peak, the war drew in troops from Angola, Namibia, Chad
and Zimbabwe on the government side as Rwanda and Uganda supported different
rebel groups, making it one of Africa's most complex wars.
>
>Problems remain in the east, with recent reports of tribal
clashes and fighting between militias, and accusations -- denied by Kigali --
that thousands of Rwandan troops have crossed back into the DRC.
>
> The Mulindwas Communication Group
>"With Yoweri Museveni Uganda is in Anarchy"
> Le groupe de transmission de Mulindwas
>" avec Yoweri Museveni, Ouganda est dans anarchy "
>
